Mower

ABSTRACT

A mower having a plurality of rotary cutting elements each of which is provided with at least one cutting tool. At least one of the rotary cutting element is driven by a transmission means housed in a housing located under the rotary cutting element. The housing is composed of cases in which the rotary cutting elements are guided in rotation, and a brace element determines the distance between each two adjacent cases. The housing is made up of at least one module formed by a case and a brace element formed integrally with the case. The front edge of each of said brace elements is pointed over at least a part of its length. At least said at least one rotary cutting element is mounted on a shaft guided in rotation in the bore of a bearing cylinder. The outside surface of said bearing cylinder comprises a first zone of a certain diameter which cooperates with a part of said at least one rotary cutting element to form a baffle and a second zone which is adjacent to said first zone and which has a diameter smaller than the diameter of said first zone. Further, the smallest diameter of the bore of said bearing cylinder is greater than the outside diameter of a power transmission means fastened to said shaft.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates to a mower comprising a plurality of rotarycutting elements each of which is provided with at least one cuttingtool. At least one of the rotary cutting elements is driven bytransmission means housed in a housing located under the rotary cuttingelements.

2. Discussion of the Background

Mowers are known having a housing which is located under the rotarycutting elements. In these mowers, the rotary cutting elements areguided in rotation in individual cases around an axis which is directedupwardly, and brace elements determine the distance between each twoadjacent cases.

These known mowers have the advantage of having a housing of a veryadvantageous design. The modular character of the design of the housingmakes it possible to produce mowers of different working widths whilereducing to a minimum or even eliminating parts specific to each workingwidth. Production of such mowers therefore is very easy and makes itpossible to produce a whole range of mowers at a very advantgeous cost.

However, the known mowers have certain drawbacks. Since the housing isformed by cases and brace elements, connections must be made between thevarious cases and various brace elements to obtain the desired workingwidth. This requires more of less complex machinings at the location ofeach connection and, depending on the mode of assembly, also more orless complex assembly elements. These machinings and these assemblyelements substantially increase the cost of the housing. Moreover, atthe location of each connection, the housing exhibits a more or lessfragile zone in regard to the stresses that the housing must bear duringworking.

Additionally, the known mowers exhibit certain details in design thatmake them more expensive than is desirable and/or make operationhazzardous.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The principal object of this invention is to minimize the drawbacks ofthe known mowers described above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

With the foregoing in mind, the mower according to this invention ischaracterized in that its housing comprises at least one module formedby a case and a brace element in a single piece.

With this arrangement according to the invention, the number ofconnections is reduced. Consequently, the number of machinings, ofassembly elements and of fragile zones is also reduced.

Since the module is made up of a case and a brace element, it ispossible to make mowers that have either an even or an odd number ofrotary cutting elements. This makes it possible to create a whole rangeof mowers with a well staggered working width, depending on the needs ofthe market.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, the braceelement of a module is located on one and the same side. Advantageously,the brace element of a module is located on the left (with respect tothe direction of the work) of the case which is part of the same module.

With this arrangement it is assured that the last module (i.e., themodule located at the end of the housing farthest from the tractor towhich the mower is hitched) does not extend beyond the cutting zone ofthe rotary cutting element located at that end.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the case of amodule comprises a bearing cylinder the axis of which is directedupwardly and corresponds to the axis of rotation of the correspondingrotary cutting element. The bearing cylinder is an integral part of themodule. Thus, the creation of an assembly between the bearing cylinderand the rest of the module is avoided. This makes it possible to lowerthe cost of the module, since machinings on the bearing cylinder and therest of the module are eliminated, as well as the connecting elementswhich such an assembly would have required.

Advantageously, the axis of rotation of the corresponding rotary cuttingelement is located near the front edge of the module. Thereby, as seenfrom above, the common surface swept by the cutting tools of twoadjacent rotating cutting elements extends far ahead of the front edgeof the module.

According to another characteristic of the invention, two adjacentmodules are centered in relation to one another. This arrangement makesit possible to cause the centering means to absorb a part of the bendingstresses that are exerted on the cutter bar. On the other hand, theassembly elements which connect two adjacent modules to one another arekept from too great stresses. Further, it is assured, in case thetransmission means housed in the housing comprise a transmission shaft,that the transmission shaft does not exhibit an initial deformation.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, at each endthe module has a flange or equivalent means. The flanges permit theassembly elements to have a sufficient width to enable them to resistthe stresses to which they are subjected during working and duringtransport.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, so that thehousing will not be unduly sensitive to jams caused by accumulation ofdirt that sticks on its front edge (particularly in the zone above whichthe cutting tools pass during their rotation), at least a part of thelower face of the brace element is located a distance from the ground.As a result, the dirt and/or plant debris that would otherwise collectat the front of the housing are allowed to pass under the housing.

According to another characteristic of the invention, to offer thesmallest possible surface to which the dirt and/or plant debris couldstick if their evacuation under the housing is not performed fastenough, the front edge of the brace element is relatively pointed overat least a part of its length.

To enable the dirt and/or plant debris to slide freely to the passageexisting between the ground and the lower face of the brace element, thefront edge of the brace element exhibits, over at least a part of itslength, an inclined surface directed backwardly and downwardly.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, the frontedge of the brace element exhibits, at least in the zone above which thecutting tools pass during their rotation, a surface inclined backwardlyand upwardly. This characteristic makes it possible to limit the damageof the transmission means, for example, which can be caused by theimpact of a downwardly deformed cutting tool when it strikes the frontedge of the housing. With this arrangement of the brace elements, theintensity of such an impact can be attenuated. Moreover, it is possible,thanks to the inclined surface, to at least partly straighten adownwardly deformed cutting tool.

To enable the housing to resist impacts caused by a downwardly deformedtool striking the housing, the front edge of the brace element exhibits(at least in its upper part and at least in the zone above which thecutting tools pass during their rotation) a thickness of materialgreater than the rest of the section of the brace element in a planeperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the housing.

When a downwardly bent cutting tool is not straightened entirely bycontact with the front edge of the brace element, the downwardly bentcutting tool also strikes the back edge of the adjacent module in thezone above which it passes during its rotation. To attenuate the impactin this case, the back edge of the brace element, at least in the zoneabove which the cutting tool passes during its rotation, has an inclinedsurface directed forwardly and upwardly.

As for the front edge, the thickness of the material in this zone isalso greater than in the rest of the cross section of the brace element.This greater thickness of material is provided at least in the upperpart of the back edge of the brace element.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the outsidesurface of the bearing cylinder comprises a first zone of a certaindiameter that cooperates with a part of the rotary cutting element toform a baffle and a second zone with a diameter smaller than thediameter of the first zone. With this characteristic, there is asubstantial reduction in the risk of winding and introducing blades offodder or any string-like object (such as twine that might litter thefield where the mower is operating). As is well known, winding andintroduction of such objects can cause considerable damage to thebearings which guide the shaft of the rotary cutting elements inrotation.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the length of thesecond zone is relatively great.

According to an additional preferred embodiment of the invention, thelower surface of the cutting element which delimits the bottom of thepart of the cutting element forming a baffle with the first zone of thebearing cylinder extends approximately to the vicinity of the boundarybetween the first and second zones of the bearing cylinder, andpreferably extends slightly higher than the boundary. Alsoadvantageously, the lower surface extends outwardly and upwardly fromthe vicinity of the boundary.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the shaft of arotary cutting element is guided in rotation by a bearing housed in thebore of the bearing cylinder of the case supporting that rotary cuttingelement, and the smallest diameter of the bore of the bearing cylinderis greater than the outside diameter of the power transmission meansfastened to the shaft. With this characteristic, it is possible todisassemble the shaft of a rotary cutting element and the correspondingpower transmission means fastened to the shaft without its beingnecessary to disassemble the housing entirely and even though thebearing cylinder is an integral part of the case. Therefore, it is thuspossible to perform very quick interventions for maintenance and repair,which is of major importance during the harvest period when losses oftime are not tolerable.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, the assemblycomprises means which allow an approximately continuous adjustment ofthe operating play of the power transmission means. The powertransmission means may, for instance, comprise pairs of gear wheels.With this characteristic, it is possible to adjust the operating play ofthe power transmission means precisely without increasing assemblycosts. A precise adjustment of the operating play results in a longerlife of the power transmission means and in a reduction of the noiselevel during operation of the mower.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the means that make thisadjustment possible consist of at least one element which is deformedduring assembly of the bearing in the bearing cylinder.

According to another embodiment of the invention, each bearing compriseson its outside surface at least one threaded part which cooperates witha threaded part in the bore of the bearing cylinder. This latterembodiment makes it possible to have a considerable range of adjustment.The adjustment is finer the finer the pitch of the threading.

Advantageously, the outside surface of the bearing includes anunthreaded part which is centered in an unthreaded part of the bearingcylinder. This arrangement makes it possible to have a good centering ofthe shaft of the rotary cutting element in the bearing cylinder.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the unthreadedparts of the bearing and of the bearing cylinder contact each otherbefore the threaded parts of the bearing and the bearing cylinder beginto engage one another. This arrangement enables the bearing to be easilyscrewed into the bearing cylinder. Since the bearing is already centeredin the bearing cylinder before the screwing begins, any groping to bringthe threaded part of the bearing and the threaded part of the bearingcylinder opposite one another so that the screwing can be performedeffectively is eliminated.

Moreover, the threaded parts of the bearing and of the bearing cylinderare so designed that they cannot engage one another when, duringassembly, the transmission means (such as the pairs of gear wheels, forexample) are not engaged. This characteristic is very advantageous atthe assembly level, since it makes it possible to use screw drivingmachines without risk of locking the bearing in the bearing cylinderwhen the transmission means are not engaged. This cbaracteristictherefore reduces risks in assembly and correlatively also reducesassembly cost.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, afterassembly of the bearings and the bearing cylinders, means block therelative rotation between the bearing and the bearing cylinder. Thesemeans are particularly effective when they consist of at least onebearing element that engages a bearing cylinder element. Advantageously,these elements are brought into collaboration by deformation of oneand/or the other element. This arrangement thus makes it possible tokeep the operating play of the powe transmission means precise withoutresulting in high assembly cost.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, a bearing isprovided with a grabbing means which enable it to be screwed andunscrewed.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, these meansconsist of at least one recess made in the upper face of a bearing. Thusit is possible to disassemble the bearing with a striking tool such as ahammer without risk of breaking the grabbing means.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the grabbing meansconsist of a central part which extends from the upper face of thebearing and which has a non-circular, preferably polygonal, outsidesurface.

According to an additional characteristic of the invention, sealingmeans prevent leaks of lubricant between a bearing and the associatedbearing cylinder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendantadvantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes betterunderstood by reference to the following detailed description whenconsidered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the cutter bar of an embodiment of the moweraccording to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear view in partial section and on an enlarged scale alongplane II--II in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top view on an enlarged scale of the cutter bar withoutdisks;

FIG. 4 is a side view in section along plane IV--IV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a rear view partially in section of the ends of the cutterbar;

FIG. 6 illustrates a method of forming a shoulder to hold the bearing ofa disk in the bearing housing;

FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the bearing that guides a disk inrotation;

FIG. 8 is a view in section of another embodiment of a bearing housing;and

FIG. 9 is a top view of the bearing housing of FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a mower, or more precisely, the cutter bar 1 of a mower.The cutter bar 1 comprises in this example three disks 2 and one disk 3each of which rotates around an upwardly directed axis. Each disk 2, 3is provided in this example with two cutting tools 4 which are mounteddiametrically opposite one another on the outside edges of theassociated disk. Preferably, the cutting tools 4 are pivotably mountedon the disks 2, 3 so that the cutting tools 4 pivot outwardly under theeffect of centrifugal force and so that the cutting tools 4 can pivotinwardly when they encounter an obstacle during their rotation. Disk 3,which is located at the right end 5 of the cutter bar 1 (seen in theworking direction defined by the arrow 6) is surmounted by a drum 7. Thedrum 7 cooperates with a device for reducing the width of the windrowsof cut fodder (such as a windrow plate 8, for example), so that thewindrows of cut fodder are separated from the fodder that is stillstanding.

Disks 2, 3 are guided in rotation by a housing 9 placed under the disks2, 3. The housing 9, as will be explained in further detail below, ismade up of a succession of modules 10. At the right end 5 of the cutterbar 1, the housing 9 is provided with an end module 11 which extendsapproximately to the outside path described by the disk 3 or slightlybeyond that path. At the left end 12, the housing 9 is provided with atransmission gear housing 13.

In the housing 9 are housed transmission means such as transmissionshaft 14 which cooperates with gear wheels, (or other appropriate powertransmission means) to drive disks 2, 3 in rotation. Driving of thetransmission means in rotation is achieved by a drive mechanism housedin the transmission gear housing 13 and which will be described infurther detail below. The drive mechanism receives the movement of apulley 15 keyed on an input shaft 16. The pulley 15 is driven inrotation by means of another pulley (not shown) by belts 17. The otherpulley (i.e., the pulley that is not shown in the drawings) is driven bythe power take off of a tractor (not shown) to which the mower ishitched by a universal joint shaft (also not shown). Since thesemechanisms are conventional and well known in this art, they will not bedescribed further here.

Transmission gear housing 13 comprises two cylindrical bearing surfaces18 approximately concentric with the input shaft 16 of the transmissiongear housing 13. The cylindrical bearing surfaces lB support a clevis 19fastened to a frame 20 by which the mower is hitched to the tractor.With this arrangement, the cutter bar 1 can follow the ups and downs ofthe ground by pivoting around the axis of the cylindrical bearingsurfaces 18 defined by the input shaft 16 without the various driveelements being subjected to additional stresses. Further, it is possibleto pivot the cutter bar 1 to an approximately vertical position toreduce the width of the mower during transport.

At the left end 12 of the housing 9 and under it (or, more precisely,under the transmission gear housing 13) is placed a shoe 21 which has afront part 22 raised like the front of a ski. The shoe 21 enables themower to slide over the ground and to avoid hooking of cut fodder ontothe transmission gear housing 13.

At the front, under each disk 2, 3, the housing 9 is provided withdisk-protecting skids 23. These disk-protecting skids comprise a frontpart 24 exhibiting, as seen from above, an approximately circular shapethe radius of which is greater than the radius of the end path of thedisks 2, 3 but smaller than the radius of the end path of the cuttingtool 4. Further, the disk-protecting skids 23 comprise a rear part 25 inthe shape of a skid. The cutter bar 1 rests also on the rear parts 25 ofthe disk-protecting skids 23.

FIG. 2 shows a section of the cutter bar 1. As said previously, thehousing 9 comprises a plurality of modules 10. Each module 10 supports adisk 2, 3. Each module 10 is made up of a case 26, in which a disk 2, 3is guided in rotation, and a brace 27 which extends between said case 26and the case 26 of an adjacent module 10. Advantageously, the brace 27of each module 10 extends to the left of the case 26 of the same module,seen in the direction of advance of the machine during working. Thevarious modules 10 are centered in relation to one another by acentering ring 28 which is received in a mating bore both in the brace27 of a given module 10 and in the case 26 of an adjacent module 10.Each centering ring 28 has a length such that it can absorb a part ofthe bending stresses that are exerted on the cutter bar 1 during workingand during transport.

The various modules 10 are connected to one another by assembly elements29. To do this, each module 10 has a flange 30 at each of its ends. Theflanges 30 of two adjacent modules 10 are connected together by theassembly elements 29 which consist, in the example of the embodimentillustrated, of bolts 31 the shanks 32 of which go through the twoadjacent flanges 30 and of nuts 33 screwed onto the bolts 32. Each ofthe flanges 30 has a certain width so that the length of the bolts 31 issufficient to enable the bolts 31 to bear the stresses to which they aresubjected.

The housing 9 thus formed contains the transmission shaft 14. In goingthrough each case 26, the transmission shaft 14 cooperates with a pairof gear wheels 34, 35 to impart movement to the corresponding disk 2, 3.To do this, the transmission shaft 14 goes through a bore 36 in eachgear wheel 34 which has a shape complementary to that of thetransmission shaft 14. In the example illustrated, the transmissionshaft 14 has a hexagonal section (see FIG. 4). However, it is possiblefor the transmission shaft 14 to have a section of another shape as longas its shape allows driving in rotation. Also, it is possible for thetransmission shaft 14 to have a shape allowing driving and rotation onlyin the zones where the gear wheels 34 are mounted.

Each gear wheel 34 is welded to a sleeve 37 which also surrounds thetransmission shaft 14. Each gear wheel 34 - sleeve 37 unit is guided inrotation in the associated case 26 by two ball bearings 38, 39. To dothis, each gear wheel 34 comprises an external cylindrical bearingsurface 40 on which the ball bearing 38 is mounted. The ball bearing 38abuts axially against a shoulder 41 on the gear wheel 34. The sleeve 37,at its end away from the gear wheel 34, also has an external cylindricalbearing surface 42 on which the ball bearing 39 is mounted. The ballbearing 39 abuts axially against a shoulder 43 on the sleeve 37. Ballbearings 38, 39 are thus mounted on the gear wheel 34 - sleeve 37 unitso that the gearing of the gear wheel 34 is located between the two ballbearings 38, 39.

Advantageously, the outside diameter of the ball bearings 38, 39 is thesame, which offers advantages in making the outside bearing surfaces 44,45, which are machined in the case 26. Also, the length of the outsidebearing surfaces 44, 45 is reduced to the bear minimum to reducemachining time and to facilitate assembly. For this, the center part 46of each case 26, located between the outside bearing surfaces 44, 45,has a larger inner diameter than the diameter of the bearing surfaces44, 45. Holding of the gear wheel 34 - sleeve 37 unit in the case 26against axial translation is performed, on the one hand, by a shoulder47 made in the case 26 and, on the other hand, by a stop element such asa circlip 48. Between the ball bearing 39 and the circlip 48 are placeda variable number of distance washers 49, which make it possible toreduce or eliminate axial play resulting from different dimensionaltolerances.

Since the case 26 contains a lubricant, sealing elements such as sealingrings 50, 51, which act between each case 26 and the associated gearwheel 34 - sleeve 37 unit, are placed on the external cylindricalbearing surfaces 40, 42 of the gear wheel 34 and the sleeve 37,respectively. The two sealing rings 50, 51 are placed so that the twoball bearings 38, 39 and the gearing of gear wheel 34 are locatedbetween the two sealing rings 50, 51. With this arrangement, each case26 remains sealed independently of the presence of the transmissionshaft 14.

Each gear wheel 34 engages a corresponding gear wheel 35 which ismounted on a disk shaft 52. Each disk shaft 52 is guided in rotation ina bearing cylinder 53 by a bearing 54 which, in the illustratedembodiment, is made up of a bearing housing 55 and a bearing 56. As canbe seen in FIG. 2, each bearing cylinder 53 is an integral part of thecorresponding case 26 and, therefore, of the module 10. The inside boreof each bearing cylinder 53 comprises a smooth part 57 and a threadedpart 58. Likewise, the outside surface of each bearing 54 also comprisesa smooth part 59 and a threaded part 60. The threading of the threadedparts 58, 60 is advantageously a fine-pitch threading.

Thanks to the smooth parts 57 and 59, each bearing 54 is centered in thecorresponding bearing cylinder 53, and, thanks to the threaded parts 58and 60, each bearing 54 is held against translation in the correspondingbearing cylinder 53.

So that the bearings 54 cannot turn once they have been screwed into thecorresponding bearing cylinders 53, each bearing 54 is provided on itsupper part with a thin cylindrical crown 61 which is partially deformedto cooperate with two notches 62 arranged in the upper part of thecorresponding bearing cylinder 53. Each bearing housing 55 supports theassociated bearing 56, and the associated bearing 56 is centered in thebore of the bearing housing 55. The bearing 56, in the exampleillustrated, is an angular-contact double-row ball bearing. The bearing56 is provided with integrated sealing means 63. The bearing 56 is heldagainst axial translation in the associated bearing housing 55 by twoshoulders 64, 65. The shoulder 64 is made by machining, while theshoulder 65 is made, after assembly of the bearing 56, in a way thatwill be explained below in connection with FIG. 6.

Each disk shaft 52-gear wheel 35 unit is centered in the bore of thecorresponding bearing 56. The inside ring of the bearing 56 abutsaxially against a shoulder 66 on the gear wheel 35. Near its free end,each disk shaft 52 is provided with splines 67 which mesh with splines68 formed in a driver 69 which is welded to the associated disk 2, 3. Tofasten the associated disk 2, 3 on the disk shaft 52, the disk shaft 52ends in a threaded part 70 which extends beyond the driver 69. A nut 71is screwed onto the threaded part 70 of the disk shaft 52 afterinsertion of a washer 72. By screwing the nut 71 on the threaded part70, the associated bearing 56 is locked against movement between theshoulder 66 and the driver 69. To protect the nut 71 from wear, it ishoused in a recess 73 formed in the upper part of the driver 69.

Assembly of a module 10 is performed as follows.

First a gear wheel 34 - sleeve 37 unit is preassembled--i.e., a ballbearing 38 and a sealing element 50 are assembled on an externalcylindrical bearing surface 40 and a ball bearing 39 is assembled on anexternal cylindrical bearing surface 42. The unit thus preassembled isthen slipped into the case 26 until the ball bearing 38 strikes againstthe shoulder 47. Then the necessary number of distance washers 49 areput in place, and the gear wheel 34 - sleeve 37 unit is axially lockedwith the circlip 48.

The case 26 is then sealed by assembling sealing ring 51.

Then a gear wheel 35 - disk shaft 52 - bearing 54 unit is preassembled.To do this, the bearing 54 is assembled on a disk shaft 52 until itstrikes against the shoulder 66.

Then the gear wheel 35 - disk shaft 52 - bearing 54 unit is assembled inthe bearing cylinder 53. This is possible because the smallest diameterof the bore of the bearing cylinder 53 is greater than the outsidediameter of the gear wheel 35. Advantageously, during assembly, thebearing 54 is first centered in the bearing cylinder 53 by slidingengagement of the smooth parts 57 and 59 before the threaded part 58 and60 are screwed into one another. Thus, it is assured that the twothreaded parts 58 and 60 are aligned axially, which makes it possible toavoid groping when starting screwing. In addition, the threaded parts 58and 60 are placed in the case 26 and on bearing 54 in relation to thegear wheels 34 and 35 so that the threaded parts 58 and 60 cannot bebrought into engagement when a tooth of the gear wheel 35 strikesagainst a tooth of the gear wheel 34. Thus, screwing can only beperformed when one of the gear wheels 34 and 35 has been slightly turnedin relation to the other. As the bearing 54 is the screwed into thebearing cylinder 53, the gear wheel 35 is brought toward the gear wheel34. When the gear wheel 35 occupies a good position in relation to thegear wheel 34 (i.e., the correct operating play between the two gearwheels 34 and 35 has been attained) screwing of the bearing 54 in thebearing cylinder 53 is stopped. To maintain this position, a part of thethin cylindrical crown 61 is deformed to make it penetrate into at leastone of the notches 62. It will be noted that, to facilitate screwing orunscrewing later during intervention, the bearing 54 is provided with agrabbing means such as a recess 74.

Since the bearing 54 is not centered in the bearing cylinder 53 byclamping, and depending on the nature of the lubricant contained in thecase 26, it may prove necessary to prevent the lubricant from leakingbetween the bearing 54 and the bearing cylinder 53. To do this, it ispossible to place sealing means between these two parts. The sealingmeans can be, for example, an adhesive placed between the bearing 54 andthe bearing cylinder 53.

In the assembly shown in FIG. 2, the gear wheel 34 extends to the leftof the disk shaft 52. This position therefore defines the direction ofrotation of the corresponding disk for a given direction of rotation ofthe transmission shaft 14. For a disk to rotate in the oppositedirection for a given direction of rotation of the transmission shaft14, assembly would have to be performed so that the corresponding gearwheel 34 extends to the right of the disk shaft 52. In this case,assembly of the gear wheel 34 - sleeve 37 unit in the corresponding case26 is performed as follows. The sealing element 50 is assembled on theexternal cylindrical bearing surface 42, and that unit is slipped intothe case 26 with the sleeve 37 leading until the ball bearing 39 strikesagainst the shoulder 47. Then the necessary number of distance washers49 are assembled and axially locked with the circlip 48. Finally, thesealing ring 51 is assembled. In this case, assembly of the gear wheel35 - disk shaft 52 - bearing 54 unit and adjustment of the operatingplay between the gear wheels 34 and 35 are identical with the assemblyand adjustment operations described above.

To limit winding and introduction of blades of fodder or string-likebodies around the bearing cylinder 53 or in the bearing cylinder 53, theoutside surface of the bearing cylinder 53 comprises two zones 75 and76. The zone 75 is located in the upper part of the outside surface ofbearing cylinder 53 and extends to the inside of a bore 77 in the driver69. The diameter of the bore 77 is slightly greater than the diameter ofthe zone 75 to form a baffle. The zone 76 extends from the zone 75downwardly, and the zone 76 has a diameter smaller than the diameter ofthe zone 75. Further, the length of the zone 76 is relatively great.

Advantageously, the lower surface 78 of the driver 69 extendsapproximately to the vicinity of the boundary between the zone 75 and 76and preferably slightly higher than that boundary. Also advantageously,the lower surface 78 of the driver 69 can extend from the vicinity ofthe boundary between the zones 75 and 76 outwardly and upwardly.

An example of an embodiment of such an arrangement is shown in FIG. 5,where the lower surface 78 of the driver 69 is substantially conical.With this arrangement, the risk of winding of blades of fodder orstring-like bodies is substantially reduced because the space betweenthe stationary locations where blades of fodder or string-like bodiescould hook and the rotating disk is relatively great. Moreover, if sucha winding should occur, it could not penetrate the baffle formed betweenthe bearing cylinder 53 and the driver 69. In fact, when winding occursat the boundary of the two zones 75 and 76, and considering the rapiditywith which the winding progresses because the speed of rotation of thedisks 2, 3 is high, the winding has a tendency to be propagatedoutwardly and to close the angle formed between the bearing cylinder 53and the driver 69. This tendency to be propagated outwardly is generatedby the difference in diameter between the two zones 75 and 76.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of the cutter bar 1. For greater clarity, disks2, 3 have been drawn in broken lines. It can be seen in this figure thatthe axis 79 of the bearing cylinder 53, which also corresponds to theaxis of rotation of the corresponding disks 2, 3, is located closer tothe front edge 80 of the housing 9 than to the rear edge 81 of thehousing 9. For this reason, an overcut triangle 82, which is defined bythe front intersection point 83 of the end paths 84, 85 described by thecutting tools 4 of two adjacent disks, the end paths 84, 85, and thefront edge 80 of the housing 9, is very great. This makes it possible toguarantee a very good cut of fodder between two adjacent disks.

The disk-protecting skid 23 extends at the level of each bearingcylinder 53. As said above, the disk-protecting skid 23 comprises afront part 24 having an approximately circular shape centeredapproximately on the axis 79. The disk-protecting skid 23 is fastened tothe housing 9 by a number of fastening elements 86,--three in theexample illustrated. The fastening elements 86 are located close to thefront edge B0 and the back edge 81 of the housing 9.

Likewise, the assembly elements 29, which connect the various modules 10together, also extend to the front and back of the flanges 30.Advantageously, the distance 87 between the assembly elements 29 isrelatively great, so that the connection between the modules 10 is verystrong.

FIG. 3 also shows the way that the thin cylindrical crown 61 of eachbearing 54 is deformed to penetrate into the notches 62 in the bearingcylinder 53 to block the rotation of the bearing 54. It will be notedthat, for intervention at the level of the case 26, it is only necessaryto disengage the thin cylindrical crown 61 from the notches 62 of thebearing cylinder 53 in order to be able to unscrew the bearing 54 fromthe bearing cylinder 53.

FIG. 4 is a cross section of the cutter bar 1 on the line IV--IV in FIG.3. In FIG. 4 it can be seen that the disk-protecting skids 23 fitpartially on front edge 80 of the associated housing 9. The fasteningelements 86, which fasten the disk-protecting skids 23 on the housing 9,go through pierced bosses 88 arranged in the housing 9.

The front edge 80 of the brace 27 has a relatively pointed shape. Thanksto this shape, the risk of dirt or plant debris sticking to the frontedge 80, which would reduce the quality of the cut, is reduced. Itshould be noted that the braces 27 (which are components of the housing9) have this pointed shape at least in the zone 89 (shown in FIG. 3)which extends between two adjacent disks 2, 3 where the cutting toolspass above the housing 9 during their rearward rotation.

Moreover, the lower face 90 of each brace 27 extends a certain distance91 from the ground surface 92. Thus, the dirt and/or plant debrispossibly scraped by the front of the housing 9 can escape under thehousing 9. It should be noted that the space between the lower face 90of each brace 27 and the ground surface 92 preferably extends over theentire length of the brace 27.

For good channeling of the dirt and/or plant debris to the space betweenthe lower face 90 of each brace 27 and the ground surface 92, the frontedge 80 of the brace 27 portion of the housing 9 advantageously has aninclined surface 93 directed backwardly and downwardly. The inclinedsurface 93 extends at least in the zone 89 of the front edge 80.

The front edge 80 also has an inclined surface 94 directed upwardly andbackwardly. With this shape, the impact between a cutting tool 4 whichhas been accidentally bent downwardly and the front edge 80 isattenuated. Further, considering the speed of rotation of the cuttingtools 4, the inclined surface 94 can somewhat straighten a bent cuttingtool 4.

So that the housing 9 will be capable of bearing up well under theimpact caused by a bent cutting tool 4 and to reduce the risk of nickingthe housing 9 during such an impact, at least the upper part of thefront edge 80 of the brace 27 portion of the housing 9 has a greaterthickness than the rest of the brace 27. It should be noted that theinclined surface 94 and the location where the thickness of the brace 27is greater extend at least in the zone 89 (see FIG. 3). When adownwardly bent cutting tool 4 is not completely straightened by contactwith the brace 27, it then also strikes the rear edge 81 of the housing9 in a zone 95 on the adjacent module 10 (see FIG. 3) above which itpasses during its forward motion. To attenuate the impact in this case,the rear edge 81 of the brace 27 portion of the housing 9 has, at leastin the zone 95, an inclined surface 96 directed forwardly and upwardly.Likewise, as for the front edge 80, the thickness of the material in thezone 95 is also greater than in the rest of the cross section of thebrace 27.

To stiffen the section of the brace 27, it is possible to provide atleast one rib 97 that connects the lower face 90 to the upper face 98 ofeach brace 27. The rib 97 can even extend into the case 26 so as toconnect the two flanges 30 of a module 10.

FIG. 5 shows the right end 5 and the left end 12 of the cutter bar 1 ina rear view.

At the right end 5, the cutter bar 1 comprises, as said above, an endmodule 11 which closes the right end 5 of the cutter bar 1. The endmodule 11 extends to the end path of the disk 3 or slightly beyond it.Thus, to a certain extent, the end module 11 can laterally protect thedisk. The windrow plate 8 is fastened to the end module 11 by theassembly elements 29 which fasten the end module 11 to the module 10which supports the disk 3 and by connecting elements 99.

Turning to the left end 12 of the housing 9, it will be seen that thetransmission gear housing 13 extends to the left end 12. As said above,the transmission gear housing 13 contains a drive mechanism thattransmits the movemen of the pulley 15 to the transmission shaft 14. Thedrive mechanism is made up of the following elements.

A gear wheel 100 is keyed on the input shaft 16, on which the pulley 15is also keyed. The gear wheel 100 engages a gear wheel 101 which isengaged on a shaft 102 which extends at least approximatelyperpendicularly to the input shaft 16 and is at least approximatelyparallel to the transmission shaft 14. On the shaft 102 is also keyed acylindrical gear wheel 103 which engages another cylindrical gear wheel104 keyed on a shaft 105. The shaft 105 extends at least approximatelyparallel to the shaft 102.

The cylindrical gear wheel 104 engages a third cylindrical gear wheel106 keyed on the transmission shaft 14. Shafts 102 and 105 are guided inrotation in the transmission gear housing 13 by bearings (not shown).The cylindrical gear wheel 106 comprises a cylindrical part 107 thatextends concentrically on both sides of its gearing and which acts as abearing surface for bearings 108, 109 guiding the cylindrical gear wheel106 in rotation. A shoulder 110 formed in the transmission gear housing13 and a circlip 111 prevent axial translation of the bearings 108, 109.The transmission gear housing 13 also comprises sealing elements 112,113 at its base which extend between the walls of the transmission gearhousing 13 and the cylindrical part 107 of the cylindrical gear wheel106 to seal the transmission gear housing 13 independently of thepresence of the transmission shaft 14.

The cylindrical part 107 contains a bore 114 having a shapecomplementary to that of the transmission shaft 14. The bore 114cooperates with the transmission shaft 14, which extends partially intothe bore 114. To hold the transmission shaft 14 axially, a stop element115 is mounted in the cylindrical gear wheel 106. A screw 116, the headof which abuts the stop element 115 and the shank of which goes throughthe stop element 115, is screwed into a threaded hole 117 in the end ofthe transmission shaft 14.

To disassemble the transmission shaft 14, the screw 116 is removed torelease the transmission shaft 14 axially, then the end module 11 isremoved and the transmission shaft 14 is pulled out through the rightend 5 of the cutter bar 1. To permit grasping of the transmission shaft14, the transmission shaft 14 extends beyond the farthest right of themodules 10, and the transmission shaft 14 can even comprise grabbingmeans at this location.

FIG. 6 illustrates a way of forming the shoulder 65. Before assembly,the bore 118 in the bearing housing 55 comes out on the face 119 of thebearing housing 55 as shown in broken lines. After assembly of thebearing 56 in the bore 118, a tool 120 is driven into the face 119,which has the effect of deforming the location of the bore 118 at theface 119. The deformation causes a displacement of the material towardthe axis 79 of the bearing housing 55, and the deformation then holdsthe bearing 56 in the bearing housing 55.

FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the bearing 54. In this example, thebearing 56 has an outer ring which has a sufficient size to be centeredin the bearing cylinder 53. The outer ring of the bearing 56 comprises ashoulder 121. Likewise, the bore of the bearing cylinder 53 comprises ashoulder 122. An O-ring 123 is placed between the shoulders 121 and 122.The bearing 56 is held axially in the bearing cylinder 53 by theshoulders 121 and 122 and by a circlip 124 which is inserted in thebearing cylinder 53 after insertion of a washer 125 and distance washers126.

Assembly of the bearing 54 in th bearing cylinder 53 and adjustment ofthe operating play in the gear wheels 34 and 35 is performed as follows.The bearing 54 is assembled in the bearing cylinder 53, and pressure isput on the bearing 54 or the washer 125 to crush the O-ring 123 (theoperation of deformation of the O-ring 123 is shown by an arrow 127).When the correct operating play of the gear wheels 34 and 35 isobtained, the pressure is maintained, the necessary number of distancewashers 126 are installed, and the circlip 124 is put in place. Afterthe pressure is relaxed, the bearing 54 maintains its position in thebearing cylinder 53. It should be noted that the O-ring 123 alsoprevents leaking of the lubricant contained in the case 26 between thebearing 54 and the bearing cylinder 53. Similarly, an O-ring 128prevents leaking of lubricant between the bearing 54 and the disk shaft52.

FIGS. 8 and 9 show a variant embodiment of grabbing means which allowsscrewing and unscrewing of the bearing 54. These means consist of acentral part 129 which extends from the upper face of the bearing 54 andwhich has an outside surface that is non circular and is preferablypolygonal. In the example shown, this outside surface is hexagonal. Thusit is possible to use a standard wrench to screw and unscrew the bearing54.

Various modifications or improvements of the examples described arepossible without thereby going outside the scope of the invention.

In particular, the transmission shaft 14 could be made in several parts.Moreover, the zones of the transmission shaft 14 where it cooperateswith the gear wheels 106 and 34 can have a nominal dimension greaterthan the rest of the transmission shaft 14. Further, the bearing 54 canalso be a smooth bearing.

Obviously, numerous additional modifications and variations of thepresent invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It istherefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appendedclaims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specificallydescribed herein.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:
 1. A mower comprising:(a) a plurality of rotarycutting elements each of which is provided with at least one cuttingtool; (b) a housing located under said plurality of rotary cuttingelements, said housing comprising bearing cylinders each one of whichhas a bore; (c) at least some of said plurality of rotary cuttingelements being mounted on an associated shaft guided in rotation in ajournal bearing around an upwardly directed axis, said journal bearingbeing housed in the bore of the associated one of said bearingcylinders; (d) transmission means supported by said housing for drivingin rotation said at least some of said plurality of rotary cuttingelements around the corresponding one of said upwardly directed axes,said transmission means comprising a transmission shaft and a pluralityof pairs of gear wheels, each pair of gear wheels transmitting movementfrom said transmission shaft to the accosiated shaft on which is mountedthe associated one of said plurality of rotary cutting elements; (e) thebore of one of said bearing cylinders having a smallest diameter and thegear wheel of the associated one of said pairs of gear wheels mounted onthe shaft mounted in said one of said bearing cylinders having anoutside diameter, said smallest diameter being greater than said outsidediameter; and (f) fastening means fastening each of said journalbearings in the bore of the associated one of said bearing cylinders,and adjustment means operable between one of said bearing cylinders andthe associated one of said journal bearings for continuously adjustingthe operating play of the associated pair of gear wheels in an adjustingarea, said fastening means and said adjusting means comprising athreaded part on the outside surface of each od said journal bearingswhich is screwed into a threaded part in the bore of the associated oneof said bearing cylinders.
 2. A mower according to claim 1 wherein thepitch of the threading is a fine pitch.
 3. A mower according to claim 1wherein the outside surface of said journal bearing comprises anunthreaded part which is centered in an unthreaded part of theassociated one of said bearing cylinders.
 4. A mower according to claim3, wherein, during assembly, said unthreaded parts of said journalbearing and said associated one of said bearing cylinders come intocontact with each other before said threaded parts of said journalbearing and of said associated one of said bearing cylinders begin toengage.
 5. A mower according to claim 1 wherein said threaded part ofsaid accosiated one of said bearing cylinders and said threaded part ofsaid journal bearing cannot be brought to engage one another when saidgear wheels of said transmission means are not engaged.
 6. A moweraccording to claim 1 wherein, after assembly of said journal bearing insaid associated one of said bearing cylinders, block means stop relativerotation between said journal bearing and said associated one of saidbearing cylinders.
 7. A mower according to claim 6 wherein said blockmeans comprise an element on said journal bearing which cooperates withan element on said associated one of said bearing cylinders.
 8. A moweraccording to claim 7 wherein said elements are brought intocollaboration by deformation of at least one of said elements.
 9. Amower according to claim 8 wherein:(a) said journal bearing comprises acylindrical crown with a relatively thin wall; (b) said associated oneof said bearing cylinders has at least one notch; and (c) blocking ofthe relative rotation between said journal bearing and said associatedone of said bearing cylinders is obtained by deforming a part of saidcylindrical crown which is in the vicinity of said at least one notch sothat said part penetrates in said at least one notch.
 10. A moweraccording to claim 1 wherein said journal bearing is provided with agrabbing means which makes possible its screwing and unscrewing.
 11. Amower according to claim 10 wherein said grabbing means comprises atleast one recess in the upper face of said journal bearing.
 12. A moweraccording to claim 10 wherein said grabbing means comprise a centralpart that comes out the upper face of said journal bearing and which hasa non-circular outside surface.
 13. A mower according to claim 1 andfurther comprising sealing means which prevent leaks of lubricantbetween said journal bearing and said associated one of said bearingcylinders.